Wednesday's Printable Words: The Raven

So, I was surfing last night...on the web, and found a whole bunch of cool stuff on Edgar Allan Poe. I enjoy reading about artists' thought processes and life events that inspire their work. I first read "The Raven" in high school English class. I didn't really get it then, but knew it was a poem that had a pattern of rhymes in it. I re-read it last night. It's amazing that works of art, whether written or visual art, are loved all the more hundreds of years after they were created. "The Raven" was published on January 29, 1845 in the New York Evening Mirror. 

With Halloween a little over a month away, I wanted to share a few printables that you can use now to go with the season. Hope you enjoy!

How to Print:

1. Right click

2. Save image as

3. Save in a folder you can easily locate

4. Print in color as a 8x10 {I use heavy white cardstock}

5. Make sure you have lots of black ink for this one :)

6. Frame it

7. Share it & Enjoy!

The designs element I used is found at The CoffeeShop Blog. The digital paper is found at Sassy Designs.

Holiday Mini Session 2012

Holiday Mini Sessions are here! I am so excited about the minis this time around. I have a pretty little package called Stocking Stuffer that is perfect for the family that likes to share their images with friends & family. The Holidays are THE EXCUSE to call me up for a session.

I don't know about you, but I love to get pictures of friends & family in the mail, especially in Christmas Cards. Take a peek at my gallery called Sending Christmas Cards! 

With a 30 minute session you'll get an online gallery of about 15-20 edited images. From that gallery you select your favorites to put on a CD, depending on the package you choose. You get 2 digital images with the Jolly Holiday package. The Stocking Stuffer package allows you to choose 5 images to put on a CD plus a little print package that can serve as gifts to close friends & family. I also include a facebook profile image and timeline image decorated for Christmas to send love & greetings to your facebook friends. How cool is that! Call me or email me soon to schedule your Holiday Mini Session. Dates are filling up fast.

**This offer is good toward a couple/family/children session, but does not apply to engagement sessions, bridal sessions, or senior portrait sessions. Deadline: November 18th**

Motivation for Monday: The Heart

WARNING: I AM GOING TO SHARE RAW EMOTIONS HERE!

It seems commonplace for a young woman or a young man to struggle with issues of self-confidence and self-worth. Outward appearances especially are judged by strangers, peers and figures of authority alike. 

I can remember when 90210 was a popular show to watch. I was an avid viewer. My favorite couple on the evening sitcom was Brenda & Dylan. I wanted so much to look like Brenda that I brought the People magazine cover shot of Shannen Doherty to my hairdresser's to give her a visual of the haircut I wanted. My hairdresser in South Florida was awesome and my Shannen Doherty hair came out just like I'd hoped. I am so attuned to this Entertainment Babylon that I still am inclined to bring a picture of a female celebrity to my hairdresser's as a visual directive. I don't know whether that's normal or pathetic. Ha!

Once upon a time, I was 26, and was involved in a Bible Study. It was the first Bible Study that I chose to participate in without any outward influences. I had been married for a year. I had gained a bit of weight and was unhappy with the way I looked. I suffered from Panic Attacks, Separation Anxiety, and depression all at once. I was also in the midst of finishing up my B.A. degree. Life seemed so overwhelming to me. A friend of mine shared a book with me called You Are Not What You Weigh. While reading this book I came across the Bible verse above. This verse in I Samuel freed me of some of binding chains. To know that my Creator, my Heavenly Father thought more of me than I did. I have the eye of my Savior. He thought I was worth saving. The Lord cared about where my heart was, NOT what the numbers said on the scale and certainly NOT what my thought process was when I looked in the mirror. I read this verse over and over and over. Then I started, very slowly, believing Him at His Word. The Panic Attacks, the Separation Anxiety, the depression did not go away over night, but it did eventually go away.

 

I had to bring it home. I had to lay my insecurities down and make them known to God so that He could guide my thoughts in a more healthy way. Don't get me wrong, I haven't turned off E! News or stopped pinning my favorite artists/celebrities. Reality TV, like The Voice and Dancing With The Stars, are my favorite shows to watch. Now that I know where my worth is I can still take in the culture stuff without it damaging my self-confidence. It took a long time for me to get to this place. Like I said, it didn't happen over night. I look at it this way, God is an artist and He creates beautiful people & beautiful things. I get to photograph some of those beautiful people & beautiful things. I am so thankful for beauty because it is lovely to behold. I am also very thankful that the Lord finds my true worth and beauty in my heart. The heart is what really matters. If this brings you anything, my prayer is that it brings you some assurance & hope...

It's Art! It's FREE!

How to Print:

1. Right click

2. Save image as

3. Save in a folder you can easily locate

4. Print in color as a 8x10 {I use heavy white cardstock}

5. Frame it

6. Enjoy...

7. Remember the promise.

Friday: Summer to Fall

 

Summer to Fall by karriedrake featuring a plum dress

Plum dress
modcloth.com

AllSaints high heels
allsaints.com

Vintage Cameras - Herco Imperial and Brownie Antiques with Books and...
etsy.com

Aidan Gray Letter K
aidangrayhome.com

Wednesday's Printable Words: The Force

Ever since the launch of VW's Passat commercial with the little boy dressed like Darth Vader, my boys have it memorized. They love to dress up like Lord Vader and wave their lightsabers around. It is so precious to see. I had a vision of what I want the boys' room to look like after I paint and get buy them a proper dresser and it included some printed art of this kind. I hope you enjoy. All my textured and designed digital paper comes from Sassy Designs.



How to Print:

1. Right click

2. Save image as

3. Save in a folder you can easily locate

4. Print in color as a 8x10 {I use heavy white cardstock}

5. Frame it

6. Enjoy...

7. May The Force be with you!

Tuesday Huesday {Sunflower}

Tuesday Huesday! My mom loves sunflowers. Every time I see a sunflower I think of her. I had an amazing Bridal Portrait Session on a farm this weekend. There was a field in the back with sunflowers galore. Bees were buzzing around. It was so beautiful. Sunflowers also remind me of fall. I love fall and all the colors that are associated. I hope this inspires you today. Make it a great day!

Wednesday's Printable Words: Pirate's Life

Last Wednesday I shared that I was a big Gator fan. I created a printable with a Gator chant on it. So, since I love my husband I wanted to share this with you. Beau is a former ECU Pirates football player and is a descendant of Sir Francis Drake. I thought it would be fitting to make a pirate inspired printable. To all you pirates out there, "ARGGGH!"

How to Print:

1. Right click

2. Save image as

3. Save in a folder you can easily locate

4. Print in color as a 8x10 {I use heavy white cardstock}

5. Frame it

6. Enjoy, Matey!

Tuesday Huesday

There's something about pinks & greens that I just love. Enjoy the color inspiration!

Motivation for Monday: Pinterest Fail!

Did you get my mixed message there in the title. The word motivation and fail in the same word sequence. Well, it happens right? You try something and it doesn't work. If you frequent Pinterest like I do, then you probably have all your boards categorized into groups. I'll say that you can tell a lot about a person by visiting their Pinterest boards. Anyway, let me continue before I lose my train of thought.
I have a board for Homeschooling and a board for Boys Boys Boys and then another for Books for Kids. All in the name of love. I want to be a good mom. I want to put a positive and lasting impression on my boys about learning. Learning should be fun. At least that's the perspective I hope my boys will have toward learning. I was pinning the other day and saw this REALLY cool idea for upcycling an oatmeal container into a planetarium. The boys had just received a book from a family friend called Seeing Stars about the constellations. So I thought I would actually give one of my "pins" a try. Take a look at the results.

As you can see it makes a design on the ceiling in the dark, but the pattern of the constellation is not very clear. I don't know if I did it correctly or not. Maybe it has something to do with the brightness of my flashlight, or that my container top is clear-ish and the example from the pin had a black container top. I don't know...so you're probably wondering what is so motivating about this failure. Simply put; I tried. I'm proud of my effort. The boys are pretty happy that they have this container thingy to attach their flashlight to. Even though the result wasn't successful, I tried it. And it makes me want to try something else. 

Be encouraged Fellow Pinners. If you have tried making a pinterest recipe or created a pinterest craft I want to hear about it. Successful or not. Comment to share your pinning story.

Hope your Monday is a Happy one!

Wednesday's Printable Words: Go Gators!

Hey there, sports fans! I am a Gator through and through. Being a football coach's wife, football is on in my house 365 days a year...I'm not exaggerating. My husband can watch an old game, a new game, 30 for 30, whatever. If it's football related and my hubby is home, then it's on the TV. The only 2 football related things I ever watch is Friday Night Lights and a Gator Football Game. So in honor of the beginning of my 10th football season as a coach's wife, I chant, "Go Gators!" Share if you like the good 'ole Orange & Blue!

How to Print:

1. Right click

2. Save image as

3. Save in a folder you can easily locate

4. Print in color as a 8x10 {I use heavy white cardstock}

5. Frame it

6. Enjoy!

7. Go Gators!!

Tuesday {Huesday}

I get an email frequently from Colour Lovers, which is a great website if you like to look at color combinations. You can use this site for so many things, a color palette for you home, creating a silk flower arrangement for a special vase, choosing color combos for your fall family photos with Karrie Drake Photography...!  :)   {Shameless plug, there.}

Anyway, I made a color bar from one of the images I took in the spring of the purple sage in our backyard. It was a sea of purple and fuchsia hues. Love it!